PHOENIX – The final regular season game of Sun Devil Baseball's season was slated to feature a post-game fireworks show. Arizona State made sure to start those pyrotechnics early, scoring six runs in the bottom of the ninth to secure the improbable walk-off victory, 14-13, over UNLV (26-26) at Phoenix Municipal Stadium on Saturday night in front of 2,645 fans.
The Sun Devils (32-24) recovered from a 13-6 deficit after six innings and a 13-8 deficit heading to the ninth, blanking UNLV over the final three innings and capitalizing on two relief pitchers in the ninth with four hits, two walks, and two hit by pitches as Jacob Tobias produced his 13th RBI of the weekend on a walk-off single to send the Muni faithful into a frenzy and cap off a Senior Night for the ages in the process.
Brok Eddy entered in the eighth inning as ASU desperately needed someone - anyone - to throw strikes after walking 12 in the first seven. The true freshman - who had not pitched for the Sun Devils since February - did just that and was able to hold UNLV to one hit and no runs through 2.0 innings and strike out three batters over 27 pitches, keeping the Sun Devils in striking distance and earning his first career win in the process.
With 18 hits tonight, Arizona State reached double digits for the 12th game in a row. Kien Vu notched two home runs and a double in the affair - the 100th and 101st of ASU's season - along with four RBIs, and Ryan Campos went 4-for-5 and put himself on base for each of Vu's knocks. Nick McLain added two triples and senior Harris Williams provided two doubles and a single - none more important than his double to plate two runs and start the scoring in the ninth inning in his final game at Muni. Jacob Tobias then earned his 13th RBI of the weekend with a single to center field to win the game.
The win marked the fourth time in the Willie Bloomquist era that the Sun Devils have come from a seven-run deficit to win a game after not having done so even once since 2000. It was the 11th time ASU has erased a five or more run deficit under Bloomquist, moving to 9-2 in those games.
TURNING POINT
After having only pitched 1.2 innings this season - in late February, no less - true freshman Brok Eddy took the mound with a runner on first and no outs in the eighth inning as ASU was in desperate need of a pitcher to pound the strike zone after the team had walked 12 and hit two in the first seven innings. Trying to keep ASU within five, Eddy struck out the first batter he faced and got the next to pop out to shortstop. After a single put two runners on, the freshman recorded his second strikeout to strand both. He came back still trailing by five runs in the ninth, and didn't let a fielding error that allowed a runner to reach first bother him. After a pop out and a groundout, he delivered his third strikeout to end the Rebels' night on offense, with ASU trailing 13-8.
BIG MOMENT
After not scoring less than ten runs in the last five games, ASU recorded 14 hits by the ninth inning but couldn't seem to truly capitalize. The Rebels' ace left in the eighth inning and McLain was able to work a full count walk to lead off the ninth. Tobias was looking at a 1-2 count when he was hit by the next pitch. Brandon Compton stepped up and notched a grounder to third that bounced off of the baseman's glove and filled the bases. Williams, in his final AB at Phoenix Muni, followed a strikeout by belting one to left center for a double and two RBIs, bringing ASU within three and causing a pitching change for UNLV.
FINAL STRAW
Facing Rebel closer (four saves) and the team's best pitcher by ERA (3.38) Matthew Maloney, Isaiah Jackson came in to pinch hit and chopped an infield single to first base for another run, putting runners on the corners. A walk by Steven Ondina filled the bases again with ASU down by two. Ryan Campos, who was unstoppable all night laced the first pitch he saw to deep right field in what looked like it might be a walk-off grand slam before being caught at the wall for a very loud sac fly and the second out of the inning with ASU trailing 13-12. Kien Vu was then hit by a pitch to fill the bases yet again, and McLain rifled a 103 MPH line drive that Maloney was just able to block with his glove but knocked him to the ground and scored the tying run. With no outs to spare, Tobias lofted the first pitch he saw over the shortstop's head and landed it perfectly in center field to bring Ondina in for the game-winning run and the mob in the outfield.
QUOTABLES:
Arizona State Head Coach Willie Bloomquist:
On the differences between last year and this year's squad and how they can make a push for the postseason:
"I think the lineup depth plays a big factor. Last year, we ran out guys pretty much every day and rode them until they broke, a lot of them. This year, we are able to mix some other guys in there, like Harris Williams. Mac (Nick McLain) missed the first handful of games this year. So, we have guys that didn't have to play every single day and we have depth where we were able to give a guy a breather here and now or a mental reset here and there if we need to. So, having that depth is important. Then keeping our guys healthy and fresh. I think I've learned a little bit on when to just hit in the cages or have a lighter practice where in the past I've always been 'push harder, push harder, push harder and fight through it' where that's not always the answer. You can ask the players, but I tried to pull the throttle back this last month or so and not be as intense, the last few games aside. I think I might have blown a fuse or two the last couple of games at one point or another, but other than that, trying to pull the throttle back and just let them relax and play seems to have helped."
On how Brok Eddy has stayed sharp and the decision to send him to the mound at such a crucial time:
"That credit goes to that young man. I'm not going to give credit to myself or Sammy (Pitching coach Sam Peraza) or anybody else. It's that young man staying mentally sharp, and that's awful tough to do. I get it. He's probably as frustrated as anybody in that clubhouse. The guys that haven't pitched are probably frustrated and rightfully so at some point in time, because I wouldn't want them to not be frustrated. I want them to be competitive and want to pitch, and want to play. I've said it all along, there's 37 alpha males in there that want to play. That's great. I'm glad. It's my job to try to put guys in where I think they're going to help us win, and I'm not always right. Sometimes when a young man has a rough outing early on and I stick him in the cooler and don't use him for two and a half months I could turn and point the finger at me, why haven't I been using them earlier? But those things work themselves out and all you can do is stay ready. That's one thing I have preached to these guys, not just him but everybody, stay ready for your opportunity. You never know when it's coming. So again, I'm not giving credit to anybody except for that young man for staying mentally into it and staying ready, and wanting the ball. Hey, let's give him a shot. Maybe he can throw it over the plate and he did and punched out three guys in two innings and threw the heck out of it. So, you never know, maybe we found another arm for this tournament stretch."
Redshirt junior Nick McLain
On if he believes that this offense can go against anyone in the country right now:
"Yeah, I think that's pretty obvious, to be honest. If you look at the numbers, it's pretty crazy what we have going on right now. It's not a fun lineup to throw to, that's for sure. I think Stanford had a decent staff and we hit them pretty good. UCLA had some decent arms, we hit them good. Yeah, we've been doing it for four or five weeks now and this is what our expectation was the whole year. It's nice that we're living up to it late and hopefully we can sneak in this thing and keep going."
NOTABLES
First Inning
The Rebels earned three runs in the first inning by following up a leadoff single with another single and a home run. They threatened to score again after reaching on a fielding error and walking to put two on, but Halvorson's first strikeout left both runners stranded. Per usual, the Sun Devils responded quickly. After Campos singled up the middle, Vu hit his 13th home run of the season to bring two runs in before a double-play stranded Tobias.
Second Inning
UNLV stranded a walk and was left blank after a groundout, strikeout, and fly out to shallow center field. ASU took a 4-3 lead after Mendoza singled and Williams doubled to leave both runners in scoring position. Ondina grounded out to shortstop to bring Mendoza home and Campos notched his second single to score Williams.
Third Inning
A grand slam followed up two runs to leave the Rebels up 9-4 after the frame. With a single followed up by two walks, they scored their first on a two-out walk before Carlon came in to pitch. A fielding error kept the inning going and the next batter took advantage with a grand slam before Carlon earned his first strikeout. ASU tried to mount a rally in the bottom of the inning, with a leadoff triple by McLain that went past where the center fielder expected. He was scored on a groundout, but two more outs left the Sun Devils trailing 9-5.
Fourth Inning
A solo shot was UNLV's lone score in the fourth amidst two fly outs and a pop fly. Ondina walked and stole second in the bottom of the inning but was stranded on a fly out.
Fifth Inning
The first Rebel batter earned a walk but was thrown out on a double play before a line out left them runless. Down 10-5, Vu's double to left field dropped near the shortstop and McLain earned his second triple of the game to plate him. A nice line drive grab by the shortstop preceded a foul out and a groundout to strand McLain on third.
Sixth Inning
UNLV collected another three runs as they loaded the bases and scored with three straight walks after a hit by pitch. Schiefer entered after two reached base, and eventually earned a groundout before another walk loaded the bases. Ondina snagged a grounder and made the throw to shortstop to record the second out before a fly out ended the frame with UNLV up 13-6. Williams began the bottom of the inning by lofting one to right field but a strikeout and double play left ASU without another score.
Seventh Inning
With one hit by pitch, two fly outs and a punchout blanked the Rebels, and set up for a repeat of the bottom of the first inning. Vu followed Campos' single with his second home run of the game to bring the Sun Devils within five before two fly outs and a strikeout stranded Compton on second.
Eighth Inning
After a walk, Eddy came in to pitch and earned two strikeouts while just giving up a single to halt the Rebel offense for the second straight inning. After Eamonn Lance singled to left field, Campos looked to create some two-out magic with a single up the middle that brought Lance to third, but a strikeout stranded both runners and left the Sun Devils trailing 13-8 heading into the final frame.
Ninth Inning
Eddy again held UNLV without a run, recovering from an early error by the shortstop to cause a pop fly and groundout before striking out the last batter. After not having much success against the new pitcher, McLain walked and Tobias was hit by pitch on a 1-2 count. Compton stepped up and curved a grounder to third that the baseman couldn't corral, leaving the bases loaded with no outs. Williams swung a strong double that hit the left center wall to score two and cause a pitching change, now with one out. Jackson followed up with a single to plate Compton, and Ondina was walked to refill the bases. Campos brought Williams home with a fly out to deep right field, and Vu was hit by a pitch to fill the bases yet again. With two outs now, McLain nailed the pitcher in his glove and the ball dropped to the ground to score the tying run in Jackson. Tobias then stepped up to cap off his incredible weekend with a single to center field that brought Ondina home to give the Sun Devils the 14-13 victory.
ON DECK:
Arizona State is set to face Stanford in the Pac-12 Tournament on Tuesday, May 21, at 10 a.m. AZT at Scottsdale Stadium. The whole tournament will be broadcast on Pac-12 Network.
The Sun Devils (32-24) recovered from a 13-6 deficit after six innings and a 13-8 deficit heading to the ninth, blanking UNLV over the final three innings and capitalizing on two relief pitchers in the ninth with four hits, two walks, and two hit by pitches as Jacob Tobias produced his 13th RBI of the weekend on a walk-off single to send the Muni faithful into a frenzy and cap off a Senior Night for the ages in the process.
Brok Eddy entered in the eighth inning as ASU desperately needed someone - anyone - to throw strikes after walking 12 in the first seven. The true freshman - who had not pitched for the Sun Devils since February - did just that and was able to hold UNLV to one hit and no runs through 2.0 innings and strike out three batters over 27 pitches, keeping the Sun Devils in striking distance and earning his first career win in the process.
With 18 hits tonight, Arizona State reached double digits for the 12th game in a row. Kien Vu notched two home runs and a double in the affair - the 100th and 101st of ASU's season - along with four RBIs, and Ryan Campos went 4-for-5 and put himself on base for each of Vu's knocks. Nick McLain added two triples and senior Harris Williams provided two doubles and a single - none more important than his double to plate two runs and start the scoring in the ninth inning in his final game at Muni. Jacob Tobias then earned his 13th RBI of the weekend with a single to center field to win the game.
The win marked the fourth time in the Willie Bloomquist era that the Sun Devils have come from a seven-run deficit to win a game after not having done so even once since 2000. It was the 11th time ASU has erased a five or more run deficit under Bloomquist, moving to 9-2 in those games.
TURNING POINT
After having only pitched 1.2 innings this season - in late February, no less - true freshman Brok Eddy took the mound with a runner on first and no outs in the eighth inning as ASU was in desperate need of a pitcher to pound the strike zone after the team had walked 12 and hit two in the first seven innings. Trying to keep ASU within five, Eddy struck out the first batter he faced and got the next to pop out to shortstop. After a single put two runners on, the freshman recorded his second strikeout to strand both. He came back still trailing by five runs in the ninth, and didn't let a fielding error that allowed a runner to reach first bother him. After a pop out and a groundout, he delivered his third strikeout to end the Rebels' night on offense, with ASU trailing 13-8.
BIG MOMENT
After not scoring less than ten runs in the last five games, ASU recorded 14 hits by the ninth inning but couldn't seem to truly capitalize. The Rebels' ace left in the eighth inning and McLain was able to work a full count walk to lead off the ninth. Tobias was looking at a 1-2 count when he was hit by the next pitch. Brandon Compton stepped up and notched a grounder to third that bounced off of the baseman's glove and filled the bases. Williams, in his final AB at Phoenix Muni, followed a strikeout by belting one to left center for a double and two RBIs, bringing ASU within three and causing a pitching change for UNLV.
FINAL STRAW
Facing Rebel closer (four saves) and the team's best pitcher by ERA (3.38) Matthew Maloney, Isaiah Jackson came in to pinch hit and chopped an infield single to first base for another run, putting runners on the corners. A walk by Steven Ondina filled the bases again with ASU down by two. Ryan Campos, who was unstoppable all night laced the first pitch he saw to deep right field in what looked like it might be a walk-off grand slam before being caught at the wall for a very loud sac fly and the second out of the inning with ASU trailing 13-12. Kien Vu was then hit by a pitch to fill the bases yet again, and McLain rifled a 103 MPH line drive that Maloney was just able to block with his glove but knocked him to the ground and scored the tying run. With no outs to spare, Tobias lofted the first pitch he saw over the shortstop's head and landed it perfectly in center field to bring Ondina in for the game-winning run and the mob in the outfield.
QUOTABLES:
Arizona State Head Coach Willie Bloomquist:
On the differences between last year and this year's squad and how they can make a push for the postseason:
"I think the lineup depth plays a big factor. Last year, we ran out guys pretty much every day and rode them until they broke, a lot of them. This year, we are able to mix some other guys in there, like Harris Williams. Mac (Nick McLain) missed the first handful of games this year. So, we have guys that didn't have to play every single day and we have depth where we were able to give a guy a breather here and now or a mental reset here and there if we need to. So, having that depth is important. Then keeping our guys healthy and fresh. I think I've learned a little bit on when to just hit in the cages or have a lighter practice where in the past I've always been 'push harder, push harder, push harder and fight through it' where that's not always the answer. You can ask the players, but I tried to pull the throttle back this last month or so and not be as intense, the last few games aside. I think I might have blown a fuse or two the last couple of games at one point or another, but other than that, trying to pull the throttle back and just let them relax and play seems to have helped."
On how Brok Eddy has stayed sharp and the decision to send him to the mound at such a crucial time:
"That credit goes to that young man. I'm not going to give credit to myself or Sammy (Pitching coach Sam Peraza) or anybody else. It's that young man staying mentally sharp, and that's awful tough to do. I get it. He's probably as frustrated as anybody in that clubhouse. The guys that haven't pitched are probably frustrated and rightfully so at some point in time, because I wouldn't want them to not be frustrated. I want them to be competitive and want to pitch, and want to play. I've said it all along, there's 37 alpha males in there that want to play. That's great. I'm glad. It's my job to try to put guys in where I think they're going to help us win, and I'm not always right. Sometimes when a young man has a rough outing early on and I stick him in the cooler and don't use him for two and a half months I could turn and point the finger at me, why haven't I been using them earlier? But those things work themselves out and all you can do is stay ready. That's one thing I have preached to these guys, not just him but everybody, stay ready for your opportunity. You never know when it's coming. So again, I'm not giving credit to anybody except for that young man for staying mentally into it and staying ready, and wanting the ball. Hey, let's give him a shot. Maybe he can throw it over the plate and he did and punched out three guys in two innings and threw the heck out of it. So, you never know, maybe we found another arm for this tournament stretch."
Redshirt junior Nick McLain
On if he believes that this offense can go against anyone in the country right now:
"Yeah, I think that's pretty obvious, to be honest. If you look at the numbers, it's pretty crazy what we have going on right now. It's not a fun lineup to throw to, that's for sure. I think Stanford had a decent staff and we hit them pretty good. UCLA had some decent arms, we hit them good. Yeah, we've been doing it for four or five weeks now and this is what our expectation was the whole year. It's nice that we're living up to it late and hopefully we can sneak in this thing and keep going."
NOTABLES
- Ryan Campos' first inning single means he has now reached base safely in 135-of-145 career games (93.1 percent) with the Sun Devils and all but one game this season.
- He notched his team-leading 25th multi-hit game of the season with his four knocks today. For the weekend, Campos bat an absurd .857 (12-of-14) with nine runs scored and slugged 1.357 with three doubles and a homer. In fact, his ninth inning sac fly tonight on a ball he absolutely hit on the screws that was caught on a leaping snag at the wall actually LOWERED his OBP below his average for the weekend to .824.
- ASU is 16-4 over its last 20 games post-Tax Day, outscoring opponents 237-130 in the process while batting an obscene .381, slugging .685 with 56 homers in the process.
- Kien Vu's first inning homer was ASU's 100th of the season, surpassing the program's previous BBCOR record of 94 from the 2019 season. ASU became just the eighth Sun Devil team in the program's illustrious history to reach 100 home runs and the first to do it since having 101 in 1990. The 2024 Sun Devils are the fastest to reach triple digits in the category in program history, doing so in 56 games.
- ASU has reached double digit hits in 39 of 56 games this season, posting 18 today. Today was the 16th time in the last 17 games the team reached the mark.
- ASU reached double-digit runs for the 13th time in the last 16 games and for the sixth-straight game overall.
- Nick McLain extended his hitting streak to 18 games with his third inning triple today, the longest for a Sun Devil this season.
- McLain became the first Sun Devil since Gage Canning on March 3, 2018 against Oklahoma State to record two triples in a game.
- Ethan Mendoza extended his active hitting streak to 16-straight games with his second-inning single.
- ASU has scored three or more runs in 67 innings this season, four or more in 41 innings and five or more in 21 following the team's six-run ninth inning.
- ASU's ability to get off to hot starts has been at the forefront of its last month of success. In ASU's first 39 games, it was outscored 39-28 in the first innings of games. In the last 17 games, ASU has outscored opponents, 44-21 in the first inning after adding two more today.
- It was a pedestrian one-RBI game for Tobias today, after posting 6, 8 and 4 in his last three games, respectively. The one RBI came at the biggest moment, though, as he walked it off on the last pitch of the game.
- For the weekend, Tobias bat .615 on 8-of-13 hitting with 13 RBIs, three homers and a double for a 1.385 slugging percentage while reaching at a .706 clip.
- ASU has trailed at some point in 38 of the team's last 53 victories dating back to last year, coming from behind in all three games this weekend.
- Trailing 13-6 at one point, the contest marked the 11th time in the Willie Bloomquist era that ASU erased a deficit of at least five runs, improving to 9-2 in such games. It was the fourth time ASU has come back from a seven-run deficit to win a game under Willie Bloomquist, notable as the last time it had even one such game was in 2000.
- The win marked the ninth time this year ASU has won a game in which it has trailed by at least three runs.
First Inning
The Rebels earned three runs in the first inning by following up a leadoff single with another single and a home run. They threatened to score again after reaching on a fielding error and walking to put two on, but Halvorson's first strikeout left both runners stranded. Per usual, the Sun Devils responded quickly. After Campos singled up the middle, Vu hit his 13th home run of the season to bring two runs in before a double-play stranded Tobias.
Second Inning
UNLV stranded a walk and was left blank after a groundout, strikeout, and fly out to shallow center field. ASU took a 4-3 lead after Mendoza singled and Williams doubled to leave both runners in scoring position. Ondina grounded out to shortstop to bring Mendoza home and Campos notched his second single to score Williams.
Third Inning
A grand slam followed up two runs to leave the Rebels up 9-4 after the frame. With a single followed up by two walks, they scored their first on a two-out walk before Carlon came in to pitch. A fielding error kept the inning going and the next batter took advantage with a grand slam before Carlon earned his first strikeout. ASU tried to mount a rally in the bottom of the inning, with a leadoff triple by McLain that went past where the center fielder expected. He was scored on a groundout, but two more outs left the Sun Devils trailing 9-5.
Fourth Inning
A solo shot was UNLV's lone score in the fourth amidst two fly outs and a pop fly. Ondina walked and stole second in the bottom of the inning but was stranded on a fly out.
Fifth Inning
The first Rebel batter earned a walk but was thrown out on a double play before a line out left them runless. Down 10-5, Vu's double to left field dropped near the shortstop and McLain earned his second triple of the game to plate him. A nice line drive grab by the shortstop preceded a foul out and a groundout to strand McLain on third.
Sixth Inning
UNLV collected another three runs as they loaded the bases and scored with three straight walks after a hit by pitch. Schiefer entered after two reached base, and eventually earned a groundout before another walk loaded the bases. Ondina snagged a grounder and made the throw to shortstop to record the second out before a fly out ended the frame with UNLV up 13-6. Williams began the bottom of the inning by lofting one to right field but a strikeout and double play left ASU without another score.
Seventh Inning
With one hit by pitch, two fly outs and a punchout blanked the Rebels, and set up for a repeat of the bottom of the first inning. Vu followed Campos' single with his second home run of the game to bring the Sun Devils within five before two fly outs and a strikeout stranded Compton on second.
Eighth Inning
After a walk, Eddy came in to pitch and earned two strikeouts while just giving up a single to halt the Rebel offense for the second straight inning. After Eamonn Lance singled to left field, Campos looked to create some two-out magic with a single up the middle that brought Lance to third, but a strikeout stranded both runners and left the Sun Devils trailing 13-8 heading into the final frame.
Ninth Inning
Eddy again held UNLV without a run, recovering from an early error by the shortstop to cause a pop fly and groundout before striking out the last batter. After not having much success against the new pitcher, McLain walked and Tobias was hit by pitch on a 1-2 count. Compton stepped up and curved a grounder to third that the baseman couldn't corral, leaving the bases loaded with no outs. Williams swung a strong double that hit the left center wall to score two and cause a pitching change, now with one out. Jackson followed up with a single to plate Compton, and Ondina was walked to refill the bases. Campos brought Williams home with a fly out to deep right field, and Vu was hit by a pitch to fill the bases yet again. With two outs now, McLain nailed the pitcher in his glove and the ball dropped to the ground to score the tying run in Jackson. Tobias then stepped up to cap off his incredible weekend with a single to center field that brought Ondina home to give the Sun Devils the 14-13 victory.
ON DECK:
Arizona State is set to face Stanford in the Pac-12 Tournament on Tuesday, May 21, at 10 a.m. AZT at Scottsdale Stadium. The whole tournament will be broadcast on Pac-12 Network.